Nadim Barakat, 39

Credit Suisse, Managing director

Nadim Barakat graduated from high school at 16 and, for the commencement ceremony, built a battery-powered cap and mortarboard that spun around, a family member recalls. Today, he's applying his talents to more sophisticated pursuits by using some of the fortune he's amassed during his dozen years on Wall Street to build a school for 325 students in a Ugandan village.

He's taken a particular interest in the school's building materials, recently deciding that construction would proceed with 25,000 interlocking stabilized-soil bricks. It's a big commitment for the villagers, because the bricks must be pressed locally and need a long time to cure. But the building should last longer, and making the bricks doesn't require much water or cement.

"He liked the idea that people would go to such lengths to build a school," said George Srour, founder of Building Tomorrow, the nonprofit that's overseeing the project.

It's the sort of strenuous effort that Mr. Barakat demands of himself as chief investment officer for a Credit Suisse division that invests $28 billion in private equity funds on behalf of state pension funds and other institutions. Mr. Barakat oversees a team of more than 60 people who scour the world for investment opportunities. They've significantly outperformed both the S&P 500 and the top 25% of similar PE funds.

It's taxing work, but Mr. Barakat keeps his perspective. He immigrated to the U.S. with his family at 13 after growing up in civil-war-torn Beirut. He remembers living with electricity and water shortages and retreating to the center of buildings to avoid attacks.

"When you have security and the ability to plan for a future," he said, "you know that's a gift."